Abstract
The study area lies to the east of Qattara Depression at the north of the Western Desert, Egypt. It is bounded by latitudes 29°00′ and 30°00′ N and longitudes 28°00′ and 29°30′ E, including Abu Gharadig basin, which is the most petroliferous basin in the Egyptian Western Desert. Numerous exploratory wells show that the area is characterized by a thick sedimentary section, unconformably overlying the basement rocks. The main objective of the present study is to outline the structural parameters controlling the area under consideration. Aeromagnetic and gravity data were subjected to the analytic signal, 3D Euler deconvolution and edge enhancement techniques. The Analytic signal and 3D Euler deconvolution were utilized mainly to locate the main subsurface contact zones and to determine the depth and structural indices of the expected causative subsurface structural elements. However, the edge enhancement technique was used with various windows to enhance the edges of subsurface structures. The structural indices were estimated to be ranging between 0.16 and 0.26, indicating that the area is mainly controlled by faults. The depth of these structural elements was also estimated to be ranging between <1.37 and 5.29 km. It has been shown that the structural elements of the study area have different directions, trending E-W, ENE, NW, and N-S.
Abstract
تقع منطقة الدراسة شرق منخفض القطارة بالصحراء الغربية، مصر. تنحصر المنطقة بين خطى عرض ′00 ° 29 و ′00 °30 شمالاً و خطى طول ′00 °28 و ′00 ° 29 شرقاً متضمنة لحوض أبو الغراديق ، أحد أهم أحواض البترول في الصحراء الغربية المصرية. أظهرت الأبار التجريبية العديدة أن المنطقة تتميز بقطاع رسوبي سميك يعلو صخور القاعدة في وضع عدم توافق تكويني. تهدف هذه الدراسة أساساً إلى الوقوف على العوامل التركيبية المؤثرة على المنطقة. استخدمت في هذه الدراسة تقنيات تحليل الإشارة و حل أويلر ثلاثي الأبعاد و تقنية إظهار الحواف. تقنية تحليل الإشارة وتقنية أويلر تهدف أساساً إلى تحديد مناطق التماس المطمورة وعمق العناصر التركيبية المطمورة المسببة للشاذات والمعاملات الدالة على شكلها. علاوة على ذلك استخدمت تقنية إظهار الحواف بنوافذ متعددة لإظهار حواف التراكيب المطمورة. قدرت المعاملات الدالة على الشكل التركيبي بقيم تتراوح بين 0,16 و 0,26 مما يدل على أن المنطقة متأثرة بشكل رئيسى بالفوالق. كما تتراوح القيم المقدرة لعمق هذه التراكيب بين > 1,37و 5,29 كم. وقد تبين أن العناصر التركيبية بمنطقة الدراسة تضرب في اتجاهات مختلفة متوجهةً في الاتجاهات شرق-غرب و شرق شمال شرق وشمال جنوب.
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The authors would like to express their sincere thanks to the editor and the two anonymous reviewers, for the thorough reviews that highly improved the original manuscript.
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Saad, M.H., Al-Garni, M.A. & Hassanein, H.I.E. Interpretation of aeromagnetic and gravity data in East Qattara Depression, North Western Desert, Egypt. Arab J Geosci 5, 747–756 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-010-0227-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-010-0227-x